Four Williamston school board members face recall election over transgender policy

More than 150 people packed into the Williamston Middle School gymnasium Oct. 2, 2017 for a discussion of Williamston Community Schools proposed policy on transgender and gender non-conforming students.(Photo: RJ Wolcott | Lansing State Journal)Buy Photo

WILLIAMSTON - Karen Potter believes Williamston Community Schools' Board of Education didn't do enough to collect parent and community feedback before implementing a policy allowing students to be referred to by their preferred gender.

“The number one rule when trying to build consensus is you build consensus by bringing people to the table and get their input,” she said. “That didn’t happen, and, as a parent, that was extremely disappointing.”

She's one of four people challenging current trustees Sarah Belanger, Nancy Deal, Chris Lewis and Board President Greg Talberg for their seats following a successful recall petition drive.

That recall hinged on current member's support of policy 8011, which states that staff shall accept the chosen and genuinely held gender of a student “once the student and/or his or her parent/guardian, as appropriate, notifies District administration that the student intends to assert a gender identity that differs from previous representations or records.”

Asked repeatedly, Potter would not say where she stood on allowing students to be referred to by their preferred gender.

Challengers Walter Holm and Debbie Hutchison didn’t respond to messages left by a State Journal reporter. They are running against Deal and Belanger, respectively.

Craig Hagelberger, who is running against Lewis, was reached once by phone and said he could speak at another time but didn't respond to subsequent messages.

Talberg said board members made the determination that it was in the best interests of students to have a policy in place and “ensure they know they will be supported.” He said he believes the policy reduces the chance a student will take their own life.

He plans to campaign for reelection and answer community questions about the policy.

Proposed versions of the policy were discussed at length during school board meetings in September and October last year, according to meeting minutes. More than 70 people offered public comment during the board’s four-hour meeting on Oct. 2.

As a result, the original five-page policy was pared down significantly and split into two separate policies – one that dealt with preferred gender references and another that ensured any student has an alternative to gender-segregated restrooms or locker rooms if they feel uncomfortable. It was approved by the board on Nov. 6.

Potter wrote that she supports single-person bathroom stalls, adding, “I believe we have them already in place and they serve as a wonderful place for all students to have the privacy they may need and want.”

Lewis said there are misunderstandings as to what the actual policies are.

“We’ve heard people talk about draft policies from last fall being in place, and they aren’t,” he said. “We encourage people to go to Williamston Community School’s Board of Education website to look at the actual policy to see what language actually says.”

In a written statementissued Sept. 5, the four board members contended that “These policies enable school staff to consistently and thoughtfully respond to all students.”

Current board members Belanger and Deal didn’t respond to a message seeking comment.

Like Potter, the three other challengers each mention parental involvement on their Facebook pages.

The mission section of Holm's campaign's Facebook page reads," Protect and Restore both Student and Parental Rights." Hutchison concludes a biography statement on her Facebook page by writing, "Debbie would advocate for parent task forces to increase transparency and parental involvement in WCS decisions."

A Sept. 13 post from Hutchison that began with "A few of my thoughts," included, "Board adopts a shared vision based on community beliefs to guide local education."

A Sept. 20 post on Hagelberger's Facebook page concludes, "The recent actions of the School Board have brought serious division to the community. It is time for change and to drive community feedback discussions, financial accountability and look out for ALL students."

Some community members have contended that the policy as written doesn't guarantee a parent would be informed if their child was representing as a different gender than their biological sex at school.

Talberg said the and/or language of the policy is due to the need to protect a student's right to privacy while ensuring that parent's right to be informed is preserved. He said that the district would be prohibited from informing the parents of an 18-year-old student of their gender choice against the student's will.

"The whole point of the policy is for kids to know that, if they want to let (school officials) know if their gender identity changes, that they are able to," he said.

A separate election for Jeffrey West's seat on the board has attracted two challengers, Julie Conley and Michele Bisard. West, who is running for reelection, voted against adopting the gender identity policy and wasn't targeted in the recall.

Williamston school board members Sarah Belanger, Chris Lewis, Nancy Deal and Greg Talberg, face a recall election for approving a policy that allows students to be referred to by their preferred gender.(Photo: Courtesy / Chris Lewis)

Contact RJ Wolcott at (517) 377-1026 or rwolcott@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @wolcottr.